Grantham Breakfast Blend is one of the Downton Abbey themed teas from The Republic of Tea. This blend is built from a strong assam base with added ginger, meant to be masculine and just a touch fiery. The ginger came to life right as I poured hot water on the leaves, surprising me with an almost-chai smell for a moment. As the tea steeped and cooled, the assam really took the lead, providing deep and malty black tea tones.
This tea echoes Lord Grantham, pictured on the tin, clad in upper-class white-tie attire. Both the man and the tea are strong enough to help you power through an early morning of managing accounts, spicy enough to manage bold daughters, and warm enough to provide comfort during a family tragedy.
After trying this flavor, I had to take a look at the other Downton Abbey blends on Republic of Tea. They have several options, a few of which include Miss Patmore’s Pudding, black tea with vanilla sponge cake flavors, English Rose hibiscus tea for the lady-like sisters, and Downton Abbey Estate Earl Grey, for your more traditional tea outings.
These teas would be great for a Downton-themed tea party of your own!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Republic of Tea
Description:
Full-bodied, malty, organic Assam black tea is infused with the spicy flavor of organic ginger root. Try with a splash of warm milk and sweetener for a flavor reminiscent of sticky ginger pudding. This energizing tea is perfect for an early morning foxhunt or preparing for the dramas of the day.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Organic Raspberry Leaf SuperHerb Tea for Women’s Health from Republic of Tea. . .
Well today was just one of those days. Everything seemed to be going wrong. Focus was just not in the stars for me. And to top it all off, I started my period (sorry if that’s TMI).
My day began at 6am when I woke up in a fright because my alarm just decided not to sound. When I woke up, I realized my stomach was sore, partially due to cramps and partially because I just wasn’t feeling great. That is when I realized most of my work pants were in the laundry, leaving me with my tight work pants to have to uncomfortably squeeze into. After stuffing my sore self into my pants, I dragged myself to work, running just a bit late and arriving at my desk to find the accounting department was upset with me for improperly opening a file which messed up billing. This would be bad enough except the file was opened properly and it was actually ACCOUNTING that f***ed up but decided to blame me for it. Then, a client caught a mistake I made in a letter and though it was a minor error that was easily fixed, it felt like the icing on top of the sh@%*ty cake that was my morning. Plus, my usual lunch partner decided to tell me AFTER we were supposed to go to lunch that she wasn’t going, leaving me unexpectedly on my own. So, today just wasn’t my day.
When I got home and saw this tea, I figured today was as good a day of any to try it out. I don’t really buy into the tea-as-medicine theory but it seemed weird drinking a tea “for Women’s Health” when it wasn’t my womanly time. Plus, if I am being honest, a tea with “SuperHerb” in the name just doesn’t appeal to me. It makes me think that this tea will taste like savory herbs instead of a sweet tea, which might be good for some but not really what I look for when I brew a cuppa. However, today was a crampy day and on the off chance this worked, I figured why not give it a try?
My first sip started off tasting of raspberry but I think I may be crazy because I swear the end of the sip tastes like a slightly underripe banana. Okay, I keep continuing to drink this and though it smells like raspberry, it continues to taste like banana. Not banana flavoring either but true-to-the-fruit banana, with a hint of strawberry. I can actually see where they are coming from when they say, “this tea is reminiscent of a fruity parfait” because it actually is. This is so simple but quite pleasant. Has it helped with the cramps? I don’t really know but it tastes good so I am happy nonetheless. I guess this day has not totally gone to s@%^ after all as this tea was a pleasant surprise.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Republic of Tea
Description
SUPERHERB® TEAS FOR WOMEN
As women, we have the power to create and nurture life, all while juggling hormonal changes and external stresses. For centuries, women have relied upon the same powerful herbs found in our organic SuperHerb Teas to keep them balanced, and now they can easily be part of your daily life as well.
Organic Tea for Women’s Health*
Red Raspberry Leaf is perhaps the most popular herb among midwives and herbalists. From fertility to pregnancy to nursing to even menopause,* this herb can help women at virtually every stage of life.* It has been long revered for its ability to help tone uterine muscles and balance menstrual cycles.* With a hint of vanilla and berry notes, this tea is reminiscent of a fruity parfait.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Downton Christmas Black Tea from Republic of Tea. . . .
I swear one of these days I will FINALLY start Downton Abbey…really I will! Until then…I have a nice selection of Downton Abbey themed teas from various companies to review…including this one from Republic of Tea. It’s called Downton Abbey Christmas Black Tea.
So what is this bagged tea made up of? Mulling spices including cinnamon, cloves, allspice and other fragrant herbs. Many of these spices have been infused into wine and cider since Victorian England and it’s what inspired this blend. Of course it also contains premium black tea and paired with the warmth of traditional mulling spices it offers a truly festive cup that will fill your manor with an aroma of the holidays, according to The Republic of Tea and it’s paraphrased description of this tea.
Personally, I first sampled this tea post-Christmas. I found it to be lovely, warming, of medium strength, and ending more spicy than when it first started. It was a decent cuppa. A good option for small groups of friends.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Republic of Tea
Description
Mulling spices – featuring cinnamon, cloves, allspice and other fragrant herbs – have been infused into wine and cider since Victorian England. Here we blend premium black tea with the warmth of traditional mulling spices for a truly festive cup that will fill your manor with an aroma of the holidays.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Toasted Coconut Black HiCAF™ Tea from The Republic of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Republic of Tea
Product Description:
Robust black tea with the tropical flavor of coconut. A smooth and delicious pick-me-up. Try with a splash of milk.
A Better Buzz – We’ve intensified the caffeine content of this black tea by adding green tea extract and pure caffeine isolated from premium tea leaves. Caffeine and L-Theanine (often credited with reducing stress) are natural components of tea providing a state of calm alertness we call Tea Mind®.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Toasted Coconut Black HiCAF™ Tea from Republic of Tea offers an interesting concept … I don’t know if this is something that other companies have introduced but this is the first extra caffeine content tea that I’ve seen. Just the right thing for someone who needs that extra burst of energy but can’t drink (or don’t like) coffee and don’t want (or don’t need!) all that extra sugar that’s in those energy drinks.
When I opened the tin, I was greeted by a strong coconut-y aroma. Mmm! It smells amazing! I used boiling water to brew this tea and steeped the tea for 2 1/2 minutes.
I tried this tea first without any additions, and it’s really tasty! It’s got a lot of coconut flavor, and it tastes just like toasted coconut. It tastes true to the fruit. It doesn’t have an artificial coconut taste and that made me smile. It tastes sweet, a little bit creamy, toasty, and nutty.
The tea tastes STRONG. I can really taste the tea. I don’t really taste specific green tea flavors here, I do taste a different tea flavor. A stronger tea flavor. Like the flavor of the tea has been turned up to eleven. The HiCAF™ is not just something that will be “felt” by the added energy boost, but it is also something that is tasted.
However, the “extra caffeine” gives the tea a taste that veers on the side of being almost bitter. Not quite … but almost. So, I decided to do a little experimentation to see what I could do about that. I added a teaspoon of raw sugar and found that this really improved the coconut flavor. It made the toasted coconut flavors pop! Yum! This is good without the sugar, but it does have a slight bitter tone to it … the sugar helps to curb that.
But the best way to drink this tea is as a latte. I added a splash of almond milk and WOW! The milk smooths everything out really nicely. I really like this as a latte. I still get a strong coconut flavor and a lot of tea flavor, but that aforementioned slightly bitter taste is no longer present. It’s sweet, creamy and decadent.
Overall, I really enjoyed this extra caffeine tea from The Republic of Tea. They have some other flavors of the HiCAF™ teas that are quite intriguing too! Um … Caramel Black, anyone?
Limón Black Iced Tea from Republic of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Republic of Tea
Product Description:
Lively Limón – A blend of fine black tea from three Rainforest Alliance Certified™ tea gardens create a base with classic full-bodied flavor. Black Limón (dried lime from Guatemala) is added for a refreshingly tart, citrus accent.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
After having success with the Watermelon Mint Black Iced Tea from Republic of Tea, I decided to pick up another canister of these iced tea pouches from Republic of Tea the last time I visited Chuck’s Produce. The Limón Black Iced Tea was the most appealing of the flavors that they had available, so I grabbed a tin of it.
And I’m liking this a whole lot.
You might be wondering what a limón is. According to the description above (from Republic of Tea), a limón is a dried lime from Guatemala. The drying process seems to really bring out the tart notes of the lime, because this is a really tangy tasting tea.
I cold-brewed this in my half gallon pitcher filled with freshly filtered water, using 2 of the large tea pouches. After I finish off the first pitcher, I re-steep the pouches a second time using the hot brew method (brewing it in 1 quart of boiling water for 5 minutes, and then in a second quart of boiling water for 6 minutes.) The first half gallon (the cold-brewed preparation) is much more flavorful than the second, but both are very refreshing.
The brewed tea tastes a lot like … an Arnold Palmer! It tastes a lot like lemonade and black tea. It’s tart and tangy and citrus-y. It’s got a lot of citrus flavor. The black tea, in comparison, is a rather mild taste. But the glass of tea is very invigorating and refreshing and sure to knock out even the most powerful thirst.
I think I might like this better if the black tea flavor was a little stronger and the citrus notes were a little lighter. I like it as it is … but, as I said … I feel like I’m drinking an Arnold Palmer and not a flavored iced tea. An enjoyable iced tea.